Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy

Pregnancy: Conditions of Employment

lord taylor of warwick: To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to increase understanding of, and compliance with, employment lawsrelating to pregnant women and new mothers.

lord henley: In November 2017 ACAS published comprehensive guidance on pregnancy and maternity discrimination for both women and for businesses. The Government has recently updated the MAT B1 form (the form which enables a pregnant woman to claim Statutory Maternity Pay from her employer or Maternity Allowance from Jobcentre Plus) to include a link to advice and guidance on employment rights for pregnant women and new mothers. The NHS’s Start4Life campaign (an information service for expectant and new parents) now provides the same link in its emails. In the Government response to the Taylor Review of Modern Working Practices we further committed to update and consolidate the pregnancy and maternity discrimination pages on GOV.UK by summer 2018.The Government continues to work with EHRC and its Working Forward campaign. This nationwide campaign, backed by some of the UK’s leading businesses and industry bodies, aims to make workplaces the best they can be for pregnant women and new parents. HSE’s web page on protecting new and expectant mothers provides a wide range of guidance on pregnancy related issues in the workplace. There is also clear guidance for employees to report concerns if they believe health and safety law is being broken. In addition, Government funds both the ACAS helpline and the Equality Advisory and Support Service, which provide free advice in this area.

Financial Reporting Council

baroness bowles of berkhamsted: To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Henley on 20 February 2018 (HL5467), whether the Financial Reporting Council (FRC) will make a statement to its levy payers that the charges it has levied were not required to be paid; andwhether they will make an assessmentof the impact of improper charging including (1) whether the practice of speculative invoicing has created grounds for full refunds ina similar way to whichPayment Protection Insurance (PPI) mis-selling has, (2) whether such practices have affected tax deductibility of payments made given that voluntary payments may not be tax deductible, (3) additional legal issues that the FRC is considering, (4) whether the FRC’s own auditors have raised the matter as a concern, and (5) whether the amount received from Carillion plc by the FRC will be refunded to Carillion's liquidator.

lord henley: As stated in the reply given to the noble Baroness on 22nd January 2018 to question HL4627, requests from the Financial Reporting Council (FRC) for voluntary payments explain that the payments are non-statutory and voluntary. The FRC also explains to funders that, should the system of voluntary payments prove unsustainable, they would request that the Secretary of State make regulations to put the funding requirements on a statutory basis. The Companies (Audit, Investigations and Community Enterprise) Act 2004 includes provisions to enable this.

Financial Reporting Council

baroness bowles of berkhamsted: To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Henley on 20 February 2018 (HL5469) and to the statement by the Minister for Trade on 29 March 2007 (Col 137WS), whether the Minister for Trade was informed of the intentions of the Financial Reporting Council (FRC) regarding its classification when making that statement; if not, why not; and when were ministers informed, if at all, that the FRC’s attempts to seek reclassification had been unsuccessful.

lord henley: The ministerial statement on 29th March 2007 set out the changes to the Financial Reporting Council’s (FRC) governance. These were part of a process at the time aimed at securing the increased independence of the FRC from Government and its reclassification so that it was no longer a public body. It is an established convention that Minsters of one administration cannot see the documents of a previous administration. I am therefore unable to provide the information requested by the noble Baroness.

Foreign Companies: Property

baroness gardner of parkes: To ask Her Majesty's Government what is their response to the proposal by the Mayor of London to the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy that a new public register of foreign ownership of properties be established, to combat their use for tax evasion, theft and terrorist activities.

lord henley: The dataset containing title records of properties in England and Wales registered to companies incorporated outside the UK is already available to the public. The government made HM Land Registry’s Overseas Companies Ownership Data available for free for the first time on 7 November 2017. The Government is committed to establish the new public register of beneficial ownership of overseas entities that own property in the UK and recently issued a written ministerial statement to confirm the timetable for implementation (HLWS417). This register will be the first of its kind in the world. We need to make sure the new requirements are workable, proportionate and that the register strikes the right balance between improving transparency and minimising burdens on legitimate commercial activity.

Foreign and Commonwealth Office

Disclosure of Information: International Cooperation

viscount waverley: To ask Her Majesty's Government with which countries the UK has no data sharing agreements.

lord ahmad of wimbledon: Under the Data Protection Act 1998 (which implements the EU’s 1995 Data Protection Directive), personal data can be transferred to countries within the European Economic Area and with other countries or territories that have an ‘adequate’ level of protection for the rights and freedoms of data subjects in relation to the processing of personal data. The Data Protection Bill currently before Parliament will provide for the continuation of these arrangements under the new EU framework, the General Data Protection Regulation and the Data Protection Directive, from May 2018. The UK is currently party to EU adequacy decisions that enable data sharing with Andorra, Argentina, Faroe Islands, Guernsey, Isle of Man, Israel, Jersey, New Zealand, Switzerland and Uruguay. The EU has reached partial findings of adequacy in relation to Canada, and in relation to the USA for data transfers under the Privacy Shield Framework. The UK is also party to several EU agreements on Passenger Name Records with the US, Australia and Canada (PNR) and on law enforcement (EU-US Umbrella Agreement).

Democratic Republic of Congo: Freezing of Assets

lord hylton: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they plan to freeze the UK assets of the President of the Democratic Republic of the Congo and his close associates, until such time as the Saint Sylvestre Agreement is implemented.

lord ahmad of wimbledon: The British Government is increasingly concerned about the situation in the Democratic Republic of Congo and has repeatedly called on President Kabila to honour both the Constitution and the 31 December 2016 St Sylvestre agreement. We are appalled by the violence used by Democratic Republic of Congo forces against peaceful protestors. We have publicly condemned the excessive use of force on both 31 December 2017 and 21 January 2018. With our European Union colleagues, the UK has already sanctioned sixteen Democratic Republic of Congo individuals (including some close associates of President Kabila) for serious human rights violations and for obstructing the democratic process. The Government does not currently have plans to sanction the President of the Democratic Republic of Congo. However, alongside regional and international partners, we will continue to press the Democratic Republic of Congo authorities to adhere to their electoral commitment, to open up political space, and to allow for peaceful assembly.

Islamic State: Crimes against Humanity

lord alton of liverpool: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have madeofthe recommendation to establish an international tribunal to prosecute Daesh fighters for genocide and other crimesset out in the Council of Europe report of Special Rapporteur, Pieter Omtzigt, Prosecuting and punishing the crimes against humanity or even possible genocide committed by Daesh, publishedon 22 September 2017.

lord ahmad of wimbledon: The Government is proud to be at the forefront of global efforts to bring Daesh to justice. In 2017, the UN Security Council unanimously adopted the UK-drafted United Nations Security Council Resolution (UNSCR) 2379, which requests the Secretary General to establish an Investigative Team to gather evidence of Daesh crimes, beginning in Iraq. Evidence gathered by that team can support later prosecutions.In many cases, prosecutions for any Daesh crimes will be best left to national authorities. Indeed, under UNSCR 2379, Iraq remains the 'primary intended recipient' for the evidence collected by the team. However, it is too early at this stage – and not for the UK alone – to determine what particular judicial mechanism will be appropriate in the future. The appropriate process will depend on the individual circumstances.

Islamic State: Genocide

lord alton of liverpool: To ask Her Majesty's Government what discussions they have had with the government of the Netherlands concerning (1) that government’s recognition of Daesh atrocities as genocide, and (2) the steps taken by that government towards a proposal for prosecuting Daesh fighters.

lord ahmad of wimbledon: We regularly discuss all aspects of our work on Daesh Accountability with like-minded partners, including the Netherlands. We will continue to collaborate with partners, including the UN, on this issue.This Government shares the House's condemnation of Daesh's crimes and is aware of the strength of feeling on this matter both nationally and internationally. This Government maintains that the attribution of genocide should be a matter for judicial bodies and not a political decision. The growing body of evidence that terrible crimes have been committed by Daesh is one reason why we continue to work to bring Daesh to justice.

Islamic State: Genocide

lord alton of liverpool: To ask Her Majesty's Government what discussions they have had with their international partners, including the government of the Netherlands, about the application of the UN Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide to crimes perpetrated by Daesh fighters against religious minorities in Syria and Iraq; and what stance they took in those discussions.

lord ahmad of wimbledon: The UK is at the forefront of global efforts to bring Daesh to Justice for their crimes. We have consulted widely with international partners on the issue, including on the consideration of relevant legal frameworks. Following these consultations, on 21 September 2017, the UN Security Council unanimously adopted UK-drafted Daesh Accountability Resolution 2379, which was co-sponsored by 46 Member States including the Netherlands. I am pleased that the Terms of Reference for the investigative team, which is mandated by the Resolution to collect evidence of Daesh atrocities, have now been agreed. We will continue to work closely with both the UN, the Government of Iraq and other international partners to help achieve our shared goal of holding Daesh to account.

Genocide

lord alton of liverpool: To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Anelay of St Johns on 14 March 2016 (HL6611), what “international judicial system” bodies they accept as legitimate to make a determination on whether genocide has occurred.

lord ahmad of wimbledon: We continue to believe that the recognition of genocide should be a matter for competent courts, and be decided by judges after consideration of all the evidence available in the context of a credible judicial process. A recent example was in November 2017, when the Trial Chamber of the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia convicted Ratko Mladić of genocide for his role in the Srebrenica massacre. The UK position is clear that there must be no impunity for the most serious international crimes.

Armed Conflict: Sexual Offences

baroness helic: To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer byLord Ahmad of Wimbledon on 20 February (HL5414),in which countries the Preventing Sexual Violence Initiative projects listed included the gathering of evidence to support future prosecutions.

lord ahmad of wimbledon: The UK Government is funding projects to build capacity for evidence gathering using the International Protocol on the Documentation and Investigation of Sexual Violence in Conflict, in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Burma, Burundi, Central African Republic, Democratic Republic of Congo, Iraq, Kosovo, Rwanda, Somalia, Syria and Ukraine. Our projects are not designed to gather evidence themselves.In addition to the projects listed in HL5414, the PSVI Team of Experts has been deployed 20 times to 10 countries, including Iraq, Syria, Colombia, Uganda, Sri Lanka, in the past 12 months to provide capacity building on the gathering of evidence in line with the International Protocol. Further deployments to Bangladesh will take place later this month.

Department for International Development

Developing Countries: Sustainable Development

lord black of brentwood: To ask Her Majesty's Government how they plan to facilitate the involvement of civil society organisations in reporting on the UK’s progress in implementing the UN Sustainable Development Goals.

lord bates: Reporting processes agreed at the UN mean that it is the national statistics office of each Member State that is responsible for reporting national data to the UN on progress towards the Sustainable Development Goals. In the UK, this role is undertaken by the independent Office for National Statistics, which carried out a public consultation on its approach to reporting last summer. The Government is committed to delivering the Sustainable Development Goals and has embedded the Goals across all of its work. We will present the UK’s voluntary national review of progress towards the Goals in 2019, and will be consulting with a broad spectrum of stakeholders, including civil society organisations, as we develop our plans. Civil society organisations have a vital role to play with regard to both contributing to delivery of the Goals to ensure no-one is left behind, and in communicating their importance to keep up momentum on implementation. For example, the Leave No One Behind Partnership, founded by CIVICUS, Project Everyone and Development Initiatives with DFID support, has supported national dialogues with civil society platforms in thirty countries to raise awareness of the Goals, as well as discuss priorities and good practice for delivery. We are keen to ensure these important contributions are captured.

Department for Education

Carillion: Insolvency

lord jones of cheltenham: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the impact that the collapse of Carillion may have on the numbers of engineering apprenticeships.

lord agnew of oulton: The Education and Skills Funding Agency (ESFA) has been working closely with Carillion and the department to closely monitor the impact on apprentices and apprenticeship provision following the collapse of Carillion.The government’s priority is to minimise disruption to apprentices and is intent on finding new employers for the apprentices that have been affected by the liquidation of Carillion. The ESFA has taken steps to protect learners by identifying the Construction Industry Training Board , as the best placed alternative provider.There were 45 apprentices within the engineering and manufacturing technologies sector subject area and those relate specifically to plumbing and heating and electro technical frameworks. They fall within construction trades alongside the vast majority of Carillion apprenticeships.37 of these apprentices were employed directly by Carillion, along with five other employers offering employment to the remaining eight apprentices. Therefore, we anticipate little impact on availability of engineering apprenticeships because these frameworks were sub-contracted by Carillion and therefore not directly impacted by their collapse.

Free School Meals

baroness lister of burtersett: To ask Her Majesty's Government what estimate they have made of the net reduction in eligibility for free school meals in England following the implementation and roll out of universal credit.

lord agnew of oulton: Under our new criteria for how free school meals eligibility will operate under Universal Credit, there will be no net reduction in eligibility for free school meals. The department has estimated that, by 2022, around 50,000 more children will benefit from a free school meal compared to the previous benefits system.

Universities: Pensions

lord myners: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether the Office for Students has the power to compel or direct universities to increase contributions to employee pension schemes to reduce funding deficits.

viscount younger of leckie: Higher education providers are autonomous institutions and are responsible for their own pension provision. The Office for Students does not have the power to direct universities regarding contributions to their pension schemes.

Universities: Pensions

lord myners: To ask Her Majesty's Government what action, if any, they propose to take to improve the funding of the Universities Staff Superannuation Fund; and whether they intend to consider taking steps to allow universities to increase income, including through commercial activities, to increase employer contributions to pension schemes.

viscount younger of leckie: Higher education providers are autonomous institutions and they are responsible for making appropriate pension provision for their staff. The government believes that it is for universities to resolve the current dispute regarding reforms to the Universities Superannuation Scheme through dialogue between Universities UK and the University and College Union. As autonomous providers, universities are already able to undertake commercial activities.

Degrees: Ceremonies

lord storey: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they have any plans to cap the amount that universities charge for students attending degree ceremonies.

lord storey: To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have to support students from low income families who would like family membersto attend a degree awarding ceremony but cannot afford the guestcharges.

viscount younger of leckie: Higher education providers are autonomous and independent organisations and as such, decisions on graduation ceremonies and whether to provide support to family members are a matter for individual providers.The government expects higher education providers to consider access arrangements when planning graduation ceremonies, including any legal obligations they have under the Equality Act 2010. The Equality and Human Rights Commission has published the attached guidance on their website for providers on avoiding discrimination at graduation and certificate ceremonies, which is available at: https://www.equalityhumanrights.com/en/advice-and-guidance/avoiding-discrimination-graduation-and-certificate-ceremonies.This government is committed to widening participation to higher education for students from disadvantaged and under-represented groups. Our ongoing reforms are helping provide talented young people from all backgrounds with the opportunity to study at our world-class universities. The Higher Education Act (2017) has established the Office for Students (OfS) which will have a statutory duty to have regard to promote equality of opportunity in access to and participation in higher education. As a result, widening access and participation will be at the core of the OfS’s functions.



Avoiding discrimination at award ceremonies 
(PDF Document, 317.79 KB)

Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

Bees

baroness kennedy of cradley: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the health of the bee population in the UK.

lord gardiner of kimble: The current honey bee health programme aims to manage pests and diseases present to low levels whilst keeping harmful exotic pests and diseases out of the UK. The programme was developed with beekeeping experts and stakeholders and is actively monitored by Defra and the National Bee Unit each year. Bee inspectors monitor for changes in pest and disease prevalence through an annual surveillance programme of over 5000 apiary inspections. Trends in prevalence are published on the National Bee Unit website. As part of the National Pollinator Strategy, Defra is undertaking work to establish baselines for wild bee population trends and to monitor UK species distribution.

Home Office

Home Office: Impact Assessments

lord alton of liverpool: To ask Her Majesty's Government how many (1) environmental impact assessments, (2) child rights impact assessments, (3) regulatory impact assessments, and (4) equality impact assessments, have been conducted by the Home Office in each of the last two financial years; and of those, how many have resulted in published assessments.

baroness williams of trafford: This information is not held centrally and to obtain it would exceed the disproportionate cost threshold.

Aviation: Ukraine

baroness falkner of margravine: To ask Her Majesty's Government why the UK is not a party to the Joint Investigation Team considering the downing of MH17 given the number of victims who were UK citizens.

baroness falkner of margravine: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the current investigation into the downing of MH17 and the establishment of a tribunal in the Netherlands.

baroness williams of trafford: The Metropolitan Police Service’s approach to overseas acts of terror where there are UK victims is that the crimes are usually best prosecuted by the national authorities where the attack occurred. However, while the UK is not part of the MH17 JIT, the Metropolitan Police Service has provided operational support to the JIT including direct liaison officer support and extensive victim identification support.The Government cannot comment on the current investigation into the downing of MH17 and the establishment of a tribunal in the Netherlands, as we are unable to comment on ongoing investigations.

Firearms: Licensing

lord kennedy of southwark: To ask Her Majesty's Government how many registered firearms owners there are in England and Wales, broken down by police force area.

baroness williams of trafford: The Home Office publishes data on the number of Firearm certificate holders by police force area as part of the ‘Firearm and Shotgun Certificates in England and Wales Statistics - Financial Year 2016/17’ publication. These data can be found in the Table E1 below and at the following link.https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/624004/firearm-shotgun-certificates-england-wales-march-2017-tables.ods Table E1 Firearm certificate holders, shotgun certificate holders and firearm and/or shotgun certificate holders by police force area, 2016/171   England and WalesPolice force areaFirearm certificate holdersShotgun certificate holdersFirearm and/or shotgun certificate holdersCleveland1,1172,7262,925Durham2,5935,7726,135Northumbria3,6978,9369,368North East Region7,40717,43418,428Cheshire2,81511,42411,800Cumbria3,2848,6319,062Greater Manchester2,2037,8508,274Lancashire3,07612,04512,458Merseyside1,0253,5123,747North West Region12,40343,46245,341Humberside3,1639,86610,209North Yorkshire6,73318,16418,767South Yorkshire2,1238,6808,986West Yorkshire3,07610,61011,157Yorkshire and the Humber Region15,09547,32049,119Derbyshire3,42112,27512,647Leicestershire2,43011,43311,707Lincolnshire4,07614,21514,597Northamptonshire2,6239,97310,208Nottinghamshire2,0818,6448,933East Midlands Region14,63156,54058,092Staffordshire3,09513,09313,558Warwickshire2,1467,8828,110West Mercia6,44824,09824,832West Midlands1,9348,0798,578West Midlands Region13,62353,15255,078Bedfordshire1,6086,3486,593Cambridgeshire3,01012,26312,583Essex4,89918,60419,295Hertfordshire2,40710,38210,726Norfolk5,25821,38921,862Suffolk4,72517,16217,597East of England Region21,90786,14888,656London, City of32931Metropolitan Police4,48125,98927,056London Region4,48426,01827,087Hampshire5,41321,85822,785Kent5,49020,55221,446Surrey3,10712,86413,570Sussex6,93421,34422,209Thames Valley6,24026,26527,207South East Region27,184102,883107,217Avon and Somerset6,09520,76721,543Devon and Cornwall11,14430,82732,344Dorset3,48710,81711,271Gloucestershire2,77711,22311,502Wiltshire3,51413,39113,740South West Region27,01787,02590,400ENGLAND143,751519,982539,418Dyfed-Powys4,49915,63616,089Gwent1,4665,9186,076North Wales2,81411,34411,646South Wales2,2376,9697,429WALES11,01639,86741,240ENGLAND AND WALES154,767559,849580,6581. Experimental statistics published for the second time in 2016/17. These statistics should be treated with caution as they are still being developed and have not been subjected to the same levels of quality assurance as the other figures in this publication. As the Home Office continues to report on these new figures in future years, it will aim to develop its quality assurance procedures, with a view to increasing confidence in the quality of the data.  



Table E1 
(Excel SpreadSheet, 170 KB)

Firearms: Licensing

lord kennedy of southwark: To ask Her Majesty's Government what estimate they have made of the number of firearms legally held in people's homes as opposed to being held for their owners by gun clubs.

baroness williams of trafford: All firearms held in a person’s home must be licensed to the satisfaction of the police. In addition, shooting clubs need to be approved from the Home Office to show that they meet the criteria for Home Office approved shooting clubs.

Metals: Theft

lord porter of spalding: To ask Her Majesty's Government what istheir assessment of the number of metal thefts in England and Wales since 2013; and what steps they are taking to address this issue.

baroness williams of trafford: Data published by the Office for National Statistics on 6 December 2017 shows that there were 12,970 metal theft offences recorded by police forces in England and Wales in the year ending March 2017. This was a reduction of 22 per cent compared with the previous year and a fall of 79 per cent from the year ending March 2013. These statistics are set out in the report of the Government’s review of the Scrap Metal Dealers Act 2013 which was published on 11 December 2017.The Government will continue to work with the police and others through the police-led National Metal Theft Working Group to see what more can be done to prevent metal theft

Asylum: LGBT People

lord scriven: To ask Her Majesty's Government how many people who are claiming asylum, and have made reference to a reason being their sexual orientation or gender identity, have been held in detention in the last three years for more than (1) six months, (2) 12 months, (3) 18 months, and (4) 24 months.

lord scriven: To ask Her Majesty's Government, in respect of those individuals being held in detention who are claiming asylum and have made reference to a reason being their sexual orientation or gender identity, what is the longest time in days thatany suchindividualhas been held.

baroness williams of trafford: The Department does not hold pre-July 2015 data in a reportable format however experimental data on asylum claims lodged on the basis of sexual orientation, including the number of claimants who were granted asylum, between 1 July 2015 and 31 March 2017 is available at:https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/asylum-claims-on-the-basis-of-sexual-orientationUnfortunately specific information on the length of time, that those who have claimed asylum on the basis of their sexual orientation, have spent in detention, is not currently published and could only be obtained by a manual check of each record.



Asylum Claims - Sexual Orientation 
(PDF Document, 353.14 KB)

Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport

Digital Broadcasting

lord clement-jones: To ask Her Majesty's Government when they plan toannounce thedates for digital television transmitter changes that will take place after 2018.

lord ashton of hyde: The Government will announce the schedule at an appropriate time before the changes take place.

Gambling: Regulation

lord chadlington: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they are taking steps to establish an independent regulator for the gambling industry; and if so, what.

lord ashton of hyde: The Gambling Act 2005 created the Gambling Commission as the independent regulator for the gambling industry.